Last year (2008) I purchased a Rogers cell phone in Port Elgin, on a pre-pay plan. It worked well in places like Oak Bay, the Benjamins, Collins Inlet. I was able to add minutes when needed (but only in $20 minimum blocks) via credit card.

It has a decent camera as well, and I was even able to get a Little Current exchange, so I can seem like a Haw-Eater.

This works much better than my American Sprint phone.

We have Verizon Wireless and primarily stay in Gore Bay. Verizon offers unlimited calls to and from Canada for $99/month base rate with 700 minutes. You can upgrade your service when you go, and downgrade when you come back. We have had very good reception in the NC.

As an american ask your provider if they use BELL MOBILITY for their carrier in Canada because Sprint and Rogers usually look after the cities not the country folk...

Have you considered adapting a Yagi Directional Antenna?

Back in 1997, I had an analog 3Watt bag-phone, and an 890 Mhz 11db cellular Yagi antenna, Which I used to avoid Canadian roaming rates, on Lake Erie, and the Detroit River.

From a point three miles south of the Detroit River Light, I could point the Yagi -SSE, toward Marblehead Ohio and call friends in Cleveland on local rates. Whereas, before the yagi, sometimes ,while island hopping near South Bass, or Northeast of Kelley’s Island, I would log more expensive calls through CAN-Tel, which, I suppose, had a tower on Pelee Island, ON.

Same Phone, same antenna, in the North Channel. In 1997, we left Drummond Island and passed Gore Bay. We put into Kagawong for fuel. We were told we would have to go back to Gore Bay, 40+ miles behind us, - to clear customs in person ( The “peace dividend” had cut Canadian customs, and the Mantoulin Agent wasn’t “traveling” or accepteing relayed info). So, I pointed the Yagi toward Spanish River and checked-in on the CAN-PASS 800 number. – Told them we approaching Spannish River, and would be touring Spanish River, Kagawong, Little Current, Tobermory, and Kincardine, in the upcoming week. They took the report.

Your Current Sprint PCS phone is less than 1 Watt, and operates at 1900 MHz. They do make 1900 MHz Yagi antenna’s, and “Dual Band” bi-directional “extension” service amplifiers – which are not cheap.

http://a2zcellularsupplies.com/bda-900vdirectconnectorforgsmandcdmainter...

and

http://www.celltechsolutions.net/signal-amplifiers-c-130.html

I do not work for BostonAmplifier.com nor Wilson Electronics, but it is my opinion that Boston Amplifier has RV and vehicular “repeater”systems packaged better. I would recommend the in - vehicle Kit, but with an external Yagi antenna. The 3 watt external vehicle “patch” antenna suggests a metal mounting substrate. A Yagi can be mounted to a pole/mast, or rail, and does not need metal for a ground plane, or heat dissipation.

Keep cable runs relatively short. 10 – 20 feet.
Mount the Amplifier in a relatively dry, well ventilated, cabin location.

The PCS frequency of the Boston Amplifier unit is output 2Watts, but an 11, 13, or 18 db Yagi will convert the limited energy into a directional beam, maybe 20 degree beam width, which you direct toward the coast of choice. If you can see a cell tower, Great! If not watch the “number of bars” and try to hold that heading as you call.

Of coarse any cell phone that picks up your "in vehicle" antenna can also benefit from your yagi's reception - it is truly a repeater set-up, Whereas my old bag-phone was three watts directly cable coupled.

As a Canadian, my Bell Mobility phone works pretty well alone the north shore depending how close you are to the highway, as the cel towers are located along the highway corridor. Coverage is also good on the Manitoulin shore and MacGregor bay, but has been spotty in Frazer bay, and poor in Bay Fin. A recently installed tower in Kilarney plugs a black hole in that area, but the further east alone the north shore of Georogian Bay the worse the coverage. Bruce